Bihar (Hindi: बि�हा�र, Urdu: بہار, pronounced [b ɪ ̍ ha ːr]   (  listen)) is a state in eastern India.[1][2] It is the 12th largest state in

terms of geographical size at 38,202 sq   mi  (99,200 km²) and 3rd largest by population. Close to 85% of the

population lives in villages. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25.[3] which is the highest proportion in India.

Bihar lies mid-way between the humid West Bengal in the east and the sub humid Uttar Pradesh in the west which

provides it with a transitional position in respect of climate, economy and culture. It is bounded by the country

of Nepal to the north and by Jharkhand to the south. The Bihar plain is divided into two parts by the

river Ganga which flows through the middle from west to east. Bihar has notified forest area of 6,764.14 km²,[4] which

is 7.1% of its geographical area. Hindi and Urdu are the official languages of the state, whilst the majority of the

people speak one of the Bihari languages — Angika, Bhojpuri, Magadhi or Maithili.

Ancient Bihar (which consisted of Anga (East Bihar), Videha (North Bihar), Magadha (South Bihar)

and Vaishali (North Bihar)) was a center of power, learning and culture in ancient and classical India.[5] From

Magadha arose India's first greatest empire, the Maurya empire as well as one of the world's most widely adhered-to

religions, Buddhism.[6] Magadha empires, notably under the Maurya andGupta dynasties, unified large parts of South

Asia under a central rule.[7] Its capital Patna, earlier known as Pataliputra, was an important center of Indian

civilization. Nalanda was a centre of learning established by the 5th century CE in Bihar.

Today, Bihar lags behind the other Indian states in human[8] and economic development terms,[9][10]

[11] Economists and social scientistsclaim that this is a direct result of the skewed policies of the central government,

such as the freight equalisation policy,[12][13] its apathy towards Bihar,[3][14][15] lack of Bihari sub-nationalism (resulting in

no spokesperson for the state),[13][16][17] and the Permanent Settlementof 1793 by the British East India Company.

[13] The current state government has however made significant strides in improving governance.

Recent Turnaround of Image

The improved governance has led to an economic revival[19] in the state through increased investment in

infrastructure, better health care facilities, greater emphasis on education, and a reduction in crime and corruption. [20]

[21] Indian[22] and global business and economic leaders feel that Bihar now has good opportunity for

sustainable economic development, and as such have shown interest in investing in the state.[23][24] A recent New

York Times article talks about vastly improved law and order situation in the state and the economic growth shown in

past 5 years.[25] Another BBC article titled "Where 'backward' Bihar leads India"[26] talked about how the state has

made strides in the areas of women empowerment, judiciary reforms, tax reforms, and public safety.

[edit]Etymology of the name

The name Bihar is derived from the Sanskrit word Vihara [27] (Devanagari: बि�हा�र), which means "abode". The

word Vihār is itself derived from the word Brahmavihāra[28] meaning “Brahma abidings”, or "Sublime

attitudes."[29] The region roughly encompassing the present state was dotted with Buddhist vihara, which were the

abodes of Buddhist monks in the ancient and medieval period.

[edit]History

Main article: History of Bihar

See also: Timeline for Bihar, Magadha, History of Buddhism in India, and Decline of Buddhism in India

Gautama Buddha undertaking extreme ascetic practices before his enlightenment on the bank of river Falguin Bodh Gaya, Bihar.

A part of Bihar was called "Magadha" in ancient times. From Magadha arose two religions,Jainism and Buddhism.

The greatest Indian empire, the Maurya empire, originated from Magadha, with its capital

at Patliputra (modern Patna) in 325 BC. The Mauryan Emperor, Ashoka, who was born in Patliputra ( Patna ) is

believed to be one of the greatest rulers in the history of India and theworld. After seeing all the carnage that war

causes, he was placed on the path of Lord Buddha by his Brahmin spiritual guide Manjushri.[30][31] According

to indologist A.L. Basham, the author of the book The Wonder that was India,

“The age in which true history appeared in India was one of great intellectual and spiritual ferment. Mystics and sophists of all kinds roamed through the GangaValley, all advocating some form of mental discipline and asceticism as a means to salvation; but the age of the Buddha, when many of the best minds were abandoning their homes and professions for a life of asceticism, was also a time of advance in commerce and politics. It produced not only philosophers and ascetics, but also merchant princes and men of action.[32] ”

Bihar remained an important place of power, culture and education during the next one thousand years. The Gupta

Empire, which again originated from Magadha in 240 CE, is referred to as the Golden Age of India

in science, mathematics, astronomy, religion and Indian philosophy. The peace and prosperity created under

leadership of Guptas enabled the pursuit of scientific and artistic endeavors. Historians place the Gupta

dynasty alongside with the Han Dynasty, Tang Dynasty and Roman Empire as a model of a classical civilization. The

capital of Gupta empire was Pataliputra, present day Patna. The Vikramshila and Nalanda universities were among

the oldest and best centres of education in ancient India. Some writers believe the period between the 400 CE and

1000 CE saw gains byHinduism at the expense of Buddhism.[33][34][35][36] Although the Hindu kings gave much grants to

the Buddhist monks for buildingBrahmaviharas. A National Geographic edition[37] reads, "The essential tenets of

Buddhism and Hinduism arose from similar ideas best described in the Upanishads, a set of Hindu treatises set down

in India largely between the eighth and fourth centuries B.C."

Kalidasa's Sanskrit playAbhijñānaśākuntala is one of the Legacy of the Gupta Empire.

The Buddhism of Magadha was swept away by the Muslim invasion under Muhammad Bin Bakhtiar Khilji, during

which many of the viharas and the famed universities of Nalanda and Vikramshila were destroyed, and thousands

of Buddhist monks were massacred in 12th century CE. [38] [39] [40] [41]

The region saw a brief period of glory for six years (1540–1546 CE) during the rule of Sher Shah Suri, who built the

longest road of the Indian subcontinent, the Grand Trunk Road. The economic reforms carried out by Sher Shah, like

the introduction of Rupee and Custom Duties, is still used in the Republic ofIndia. He revived the city of Patna, where

he built up his headquarter.[42][43] In the years 1553–56 Afghan dynasty ruler 'Adil Shah' took the reigns of North-India

and made 'Chunar' his capital. He deputed 'Hemu' the Hindu General, also known as 'Hemu Vikramaditya' as his

Prime Minister and Chief-of-Army. Hemu fought and won 22 battles continuously against Afghan rebels and Akbar's

forces at Agra and Delhi and established 'Hindu Raj' in Delhi, after a foreign rule of 300 years. Hemu, who was

bestowed the title of 'Samrat' at Purana Quila, Delhi was then known as 'Samrat Hem Chandra Vikramaditya'. Hemu

lost his life while fighting in the 'Second Battle of Panipat' against Akbar's forces on Nov. 7,1556. During 1557–

1576, Akbar, the Mughal emperor, annexed Bihar and Bengal to his empire.[44] With the decline of the Mughals, Bihar

passed under the control of the Nawabs of Bengal. Thus, the medieval period was mostly one of anonymous

provincial existence.

The tenth and the last Guru of Sikhism, Guru Gobind Singh was born in Patna. After the Battle of Buxar (1764),

the British East India Company obtained the diwani rights (rights to administer, and collect revenue or tax) for

Bihar, Bengal and Orissa. From this point, Bihar remained a part the Bengal Presidency of the British Raj until 1912,

when the province of Bihar and Orissa was carved out as a separate province. Bihar now celebrates its birthday as

Bihar Diwas on 22 March from 2010. In 1935, certain portions of Bihar were reorganised into the separate province

of Orissa.

Babu Kunwar Singh of Jagdishpur and his army, as well as countless other persons from Bihar, contributed to

the India's First War of Independence (1857), also called the Sepoy Mutiny by some historians. Resurgence in the

history of Bihar came during the struggle for India's independence.

Rajendra Prasad (Sitting left) &Anugrah Narayan Sinha (sitting right) during 1917 Satyagraha movement

It was from Bihar that Mahatma Gandhi launched his pioneering civil-disobedience movement, Champaran

Satyagraha. Bhumihar Brahmins inChamparan had earlier revolted against indigo cultivation in 1914 (at Pipra) and

1916 (Turkaulia) and Pandit Raj Kumar Shukla took Mahatma Gandhito Champaran and the Champaran Satyagraha

began.[45] Raj Kumar Shukla drew the attention of Mahatma Gandhi to the exploitation of the peasants

by European indigo planters.Champaran Satyagraha received the spontaneous support from many Bihari nationalists

like Rajendra Prasad who became the first President of India and Anugrah Narayan Sinha who ultimately became the

first Deputy Chief Minister cum Finance Minister of Bihar.[46]

In the northern and central regions of Bihar, peasants movement was an important consequence of the Freedom

Movement. The Kisan Sabha movement started in Bihar under the leadership of Swami Sahajanand Saraswati who

had formed in 1929, the Bihar Provincial Kisan Sabha (BPKS), in order to mobilise peasant grievances against the

zamindari attacks on their occupancy rights.[47] Gradually the peasant movement intensified and spread across the

rest of India. All these radical developments on the peasant front culminated in the formation of the All India Kisan

Sabha (AIKS) at the Lucknow session of the Indian National Congress in April 1936 with Swami Sahajanand

Saraswati elected as its first President.[48] This movement aimed at overthrowing the feudal (zamindari) system

instituted by the British. It was led by Swami Sahajanand Saraswati and his followers Pandit Yamuna Karjee, Rahul

Sankrityayan, Pandit Karyanand Sharma, Baba Nagarjun and others. Pandit Yamuna Karjee along with Rahul

Sankritayan and a few others started publishing a Hindi weekly Hunkar from Bihar, in 1940. Hunkar later became the

mouthpiece of the peasant movement and the agrarian movement in Bihar and was instrumental in spreading it.

Bihar made an immense contribution to the Freedom Struggle, with outstanding leaders like Swami Sahajanand

Saraswati, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Sri Krishna Sinha, Dr.Anugrah Narayan Sinha, Brajkishore Prasad, Mulana

Mazharul Haque, Jayaprakash Narayan, Satyendra Narayan Sinha, Basawon Singh, Rameshwar Prasad

Sinha, Yogendra Shukla, Jaglal Mahto, Baikuntha Shukla, Sheel Bhadra Yajee, Pandit Yamuna Karjee and many

others who worked for India's freedom relentlessly and helped in the upliftment of the underprivileged masses.

[49] Khudiram Bose, Upendra Narayan Jha "Azad", Prafulla Chaki and Baikuntha Shukla were active in revolutionary

movement in Bihar.

On January 15, 1934, Bihar was devastated by an earthquake of magnitude 8.4. Some 30,000 people were said to

have died in the quake.

The state of Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar in the year 2000.[50] The 2005 Bihar assembly elections ended 15

years of continuous RJD rule in the state, giving way to NDA led byNitish Kumar.

Bihari migrant workers have faced violence and prejudice in many parts of India, such

as Maharashtra, Punjab and Assam.[51][52][53]

See also: 2008 attacks on North Indians in Maharashtra

[edit]Geography and climate

Main articles: Geography of Bihar and Climate of Bihar

Map of Bihar

Topographic map

Flooded farmlands in northern Bihar

[edit]Geography

Bihar is a vast stretch of fertile plain. It is drained by the Ganges River, including its northern

tributaries Gandak and Koshi, originating in the Nepal Himalayas and the Bagmati originating in the Kathmandu

Valley that regularly flood parts of the Bihar plains. The total area covered by the state of Bihar is 94,163 km². the

state is located between 21°-58'-10" N ~ 27°-31'-15" N latitude and between 82°-19'-50" E ~ 88°-17'-40" E longitude.

Its average elevation above sea level is 173 feet (53 m).The Ganges divides Bihar into two unequal halves and flows

through the middle from west to east. Other Ganges tributaries are the Son, Budhi Gandak, Chandan, Orhani

and Falgu. Though theHimalayas begin at the foothills, a short distance inside Nepal and to the north of Bihar, the

mountains influence Bihar's landforms, climate, hydrology and culture. Central parts of Bihar have some small hills,

for example the Rajgir hills. To the south is the Chota Nagpur plateau, which was part of Bihar until 2000 but now is

part of a separate state called Jharkhand.

[edit]Climate

Bihar is mildly cold in the winter (the lowest temperatures being in the range from 4 to 10 degrees Celsius; 40 to 50

degrees Fahrenheit). Winter months are December and January. It is hot in the summer (with average highs around

35-40 Celsius; 95-105 Fahrenheit). April to mid June are the hot months. The monsoon months of June, July, August,

and September see good rainfall. October,November and February,March have a pleasant climate.

[edit]Flora and fauna

Peepal tree (The Bodhi Tree at theMahabodhi Temple is also Peepal tree)'

Bauhinia acuminata locally knowns as Kachnaar

Main articles: Flora of Bihar and Fauna of Bihar

See also: Protected areas of Bihar

Bihar has notified forest area of 6,764.14 km², which is 7.1% of its geographical area.[4] The sub Himalayan foothill of

Someshwar and the Dun ranges in the Champaran district are another belt of moist deciduous forests. These also

consist of scrub, grass and reeds. Here the rainfall is above 1,600 mm and thus promotes luxuriant Sal forests in the

area. The most important trees are Shorea Robusta (Sal), Shisham, Cedrela Toona, Khair, and Semal. Deciduous

forests also occur in the Saharsa and Purnia districts.[54] Shorea Robusta (sal), Dispyros melanoxylon

(kendu), Boswellia serrata (salai), Terminalia tomentose (Asan), Terminalia bellayoica (Bahera), Terminalia Arjuna

(Arjun), Pterocarpus Marsupium (Paisar), Madhuca indica (Mahua) are the common flora across the forest of Bihar.

The Ganges River dolphins, or “sois” are found in the Ganges and Brahmaputra.This river dolphin is the national

aquatic animal of India. It is now considered amongst the most endangered mammals of the region.The dolphins

range from 2.3 to 2.6 meters in length.They have impaired vision due to the muddy river water but use sonar signals

to navigate.Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary ,near Bhagalpur is setup to ensure the protection of this species.

Valmiki National Park, West Champaran district, covering about 800 km² of forest, is the 18th Tiger Reserve of

India and is ranked fourth in terms of density of tiger population.[55] It has diverse landscape, sheltering rich wildlife

habitats and floral and faunal composition, along with the prime protected carnivores.

[edit]Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Bihar

See also: Bihari people

Bihar is the third most populated state of India with total population of 82,998,509 (43,243,795 male and 39,754,714

female).[57][58] Nearly 85% of Bihar's population lives in rural areas. Almost 58% of Biharis are below 25 years age,

which is the highest in India. Hinduism is practiced by 83.2% of the population.

[59] Islam is practiced by 16.5% of the population, and other religions make up less than

0.5%.[59] Since ancient times, Bihar has attracted migrants and settlers including Bengalis, Turks from Central

Asia, Persians, Afghans and Punjabi Hindu Refugees during the Partition of British India in 1947.[60] Bihar has a

total literacy rate of 47% (59.7% for males 33.1% for females).[61]

[show]Population Growth

                         Largest cities in Biharview • talk • edi

t

  City DistrictPopulatio

n    City District Population

1 Patna Patna 1,866,444

Patna

Muzzafarpur

8 Munger Munger 188,050

2 Gaya Gaya 385,432 9 Chapra Saran 179,190

3 Bhagalpur Bhagalpur 340,767 10 Katihar Katihar 175,199

4 Muzaffarpur Muzaffarpur 305,525 11 Purnia Purnia 171,687

5 Darbhanga Darbhanga 267,348 12 Danapur Patna 131,176

6 Biharsarif Nalanda 232,071 13 Sasaram Rohtas 141,176

7 Ara Bhojpur 203,380 14 Dehri Rohtas 119,007

Source: Census of India 2001[62]

[edit]Government and administration

Main articles: Government of Bihar and Administration in Bihar

See also: Divisions of Bihar and Districts of Bihar

Vidhansabha Building, Patna

The constitutional head of the Government of Bihar is

the Governor, who is appointed by the President of India. The

real executive power rests with the Chief Minister and the

cabinet. The political party or the coalition of political parties

having a majority in the Legislative Assembly forms the

Government.

The current Chief Minister, Nitish Kr, is considered one of the best chief ministers of a state in India as is evident by

the performance of the state in various field in the last few years.

The head of the bureaucracy of the State is the Chief Secretary. Under this position, is a hierarchy of officials drawn

from the Indian Administrative Service, Indian Police Service, and different wings of the State Civil Services.

The judiciary is headed by the Chief Justice. Bihar has a High Court which has been functioning since 1916. All the

branches of the government are located in the state capital, Patna.

Bihar State Symbols [63]

State bird India roller

State animal Gaur

State flower Kanchnar

State tree Peepal

The state is divided into 09 divisions and 38 districts, for administrative purposes. The various districts included in the

divisions - Patna, Tirhut, Saran, Darbhanga, Kosi, Purnia,Bhagalpur, Munger and Magadh Division, are as listed

below.

District map of Bihar

Division        Headquarters        DistrictsBhagalpur        Bhagalpur        Banka, BhagalpurDarbhanga        Darbhanga        Begusarai, Darbhanga, Madhubani, SamastipurKosi        Saharsa        Madhepura, Saharsa, SupaulMagadh        Gaya        Arwal, Aurangabad, Gaya, Jehanabad, NawadaMunger        Munger        Jamui, Khagaria, Munger, Lakhisarai, SheikhpuraPatna        Patna        Bhojpur, Buxar, Kaimur, Patna, Rohtas, NalandaPurnia        Purnia        Araria, Katihar, Kishanganj, PurniaSaran        Chapra        Gopalganj, Saran, SiwanTirhut        Muzaffarpur        East Champaran, Muzaffarpur, Sheohar, Sitamarhi, Vaishali, West Champaran

[edit]Politics

See also: Political parties in Bihar

Main article: Politics of Bihar

Dr. Rajendra Prasad, 1st President of India.

Dr Sri Krishna Sinha (Right) with DrAnugrah Narayan Sinha (Left) during swearing-in ceremony of independent Bihar's first

government on 15th of August,1947

Jayaprakash Narayan called forSampurna Kranti - total revolution - at a historic rally of students at Patna'sGandhi Maidan on the 5th

of June, 1975.

Bihar was an important part of India's struggle for independence. Gandhi became the mass leader only after

theChamparan Satyagraha that he launched on the repeated request of a local leader, Raj kumar Shukla, he

was supported by great illumanaries like Rajendra Prasad, Sri Krishna Sinha, Anugrah Narayan

Sinha and Brajkishore Prasad.

The first Bihar Governments in 1937 and 1946 were led by two eminent leaders Sri Babu (Dr. Sri Krishna

Sinha) and Anugrah Babu (Dr. Anugrah Narayan Sinha) who were men of unimpeachable integrity and great

public spirit.[64]They ran an exemplary government in Bihar.[64] Bihar was rated as the best administered among

the states in the country at that time.[65]

Even after independence, when India was falling into an autocratic rule during the regime of Indira Gandhi, the

main thrust to the movement to hold elections came from Bihar under the leadership of Jayaprakash Narayan.

The airport of Patna is also named after him. This resulted in two things:

1. Bihar gained an anti-establishment image. The establishment oriented press often projected the state

as indiscipline and anarchy.

2. As a result,the identity of Bihar, representing a glorious past, was lost. Its voice often used to get lost

in the din of regional clamor of other states, specially the linguistic states like Uttar pradesh, Madhya

pradesh etc.

Since the regional identity was slowly getting sidelined , its place was taken up by caste based politics, power

initially being in the hands of theKayastha, Rajput, Brahmin and Bhumihar Brahmins. After Independence, the

power was shared by the two great Gandhians Dr. Sri Krishna Sinha, who later became the first chief

minister of Bihar and Dr. Anugrah Narayan Sinha, who decidedly was next to him in the cabinet and served as

the first deputy chief minister cum Finance Minister of Bihar.In the late 60s, the death of Mr. Lalit Narayan

Mishra, the Indian Railway minister (who was killed by a hand grenade attack for which Central leadership is

blamed most of the time) pronounced the end of indigenous work oriented mass leaders. For two decades, the

Congress ruled the state with the help of puppet chief ministries hand in glove with the central government

(Mrs. Indira Gandhi) ignoring the welfare of the people of the state. It was the time when a prominent leader like

Satyendra Narayan Sinha took sides with the Janata Party and deserted congress from where his political roots

originated, following the ideological differences with the congress. Idealism did assert itself in the politics from

time to time, viz, 1977 when a wave defeated the entrenched Congress Party and then again in 1989

when Janata Dal came to power on an anti corruption wave. In between, the socialist movement tried to break

the stranglehold of the status quoits under the leadership of Mahamaya Prasad Sinha and Karpoori Thakur.

Unfortunately, this could not flourish, partly due to the impractical idealism of these leaders and partly due to

the machinations of the central leaders of the Congress Party who felt threatened by a large politically aware

state. The Communist movement in Bihar was led by veteran communist leaders like the venerable Pandit

Karyanand Sharma, Indradeep Sinha,Chandrashekhar Singh, Sunil Mukherjee, Jagannath Sarkar and others.

[64]

Janata Dal came to power in the state in 1990 on the back of its victory at the national stage in 1989. Lalu

Prasad Yadav became Chief Minister after winning the race of legislative party leadership by a slender margin

against Ram Sundar Das, a former chief minister from the Janata Party and close to eminent Janata

Party leaders like Chandrashekhar and S N Sinha. Later, Lalu Prasad Yadav gained popularity with the masses

through a series of popular and populist measures. The principled socialists, Nitish Kumar included, gradually

left him andLalu Prasad Yadav by 1995, was both Chief Minister as well as the President of his party, Rashtriya

Janata Dal. He was a charismatic leader who had the people's support. But he couldn't bring the derailed

wagon of development of the state onto the track. When corruption charges got serious, he quit the post of CM

but anointed his wife as the CM and ruled through proxy. In this period, the administration deteriorated quickly.

By 2004, 14 years after's Lalu's victory, The Economist magazine said that "Bihar [had] become a byword for

the worst of India, of widespread and inescapable poverty, of corrupt politicians indistinguishable from mafia-

dons they patronise, caste-ridden social order that has retained the worst feudal cruelties".[66] In 2005, the

World Bank believed that issues faced by the state was "enormous" because of "persistent poverty, complex

social stratification, unsatisfactory infrastructure and weak governance".[67]

In 2005, as disaffection reached a crescendo among the masses including the middle classes, the RJD was

voted out of power and Lalu Prasad Yadav lost an election to a coalition headed by his previous ally and now

rival Nitish Kumar. Despite the separation of financially richer Jharkhand, Bihar has actually seen more positive

growth in recent years under his leadership.

Currently, there are two main political formations: the NDA which comprises Janata Dal and Bharatiya Janata

Party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal led coalition which also has the Indian National Congress. There are myriad

other political formations. Ram Vilas Paswan led Lok Janshakti Party is a constituent of the UPA at the centre,

but does not see eye to eye withLalu Prasad Yadav's RJD in Bihar. Bihar People's Party is a small political

formation in the northern regions. The Communist Party of India had a strong presence in Bihar at one time, but

is weakened now. The CPM and Forward Bloc have a minor presence, along with the other extreme Left.

[edit]Economy

YearGross State Domestic Product(millions of Indian Rupees)[68]

1980 73,530

1985 142,950

1990 264,290

1995 244,830

2000 469,430

2005710,060

[69]

Main article: Economy of Bihar

Bihar accounts for 65% of India's annual litchi production.[70]

Farm workers in Bihar

The economy of Bihar is largely service oriented, but it also has a significant agricultural base. The state also

has a small industrial sector. As of 2008, agriculture accounts for 35%, industry 9% and service 55% of the

economy of the state.[71] Manufacturing performed very poorly in the state between 2002–2006, with an average

growth rate of 0.38% compared to India's 7.8%. However, now there is rapid growth and its manufacturing

growth rate has reached 36.07% ,which has become the second best manufacturing state in India[citation needed].

Bihar was the lowest GDP per capita in India, although there are pockets of higher than the average per capita

income.[72] Between 1999 and 2008, GDP grew by 5.1% a year, which was below the Indian average of 7.3%.

[73] More recently, Bihar's state GDP recorded a growth of 18% between 2006–2007, and stood at 942510

Crores Rupees[74] ($21 billion nominal GDP). This makes Bihar the fastest growing major state. In actual terms,

Bihar state GDP is ranked 2nd out of 28 states.[citation needed] Corruption is an import hurdle for the government to

overcome according to Transparency International India, which highlighted Bihar as the Union's most corrupt

state in a 2005 report. Despite many recent economic gains, significant challenges remain to do business in the

state and the government has also stated that combating corruption is now the biggest challenge facing the

administration.In Nitish Kumar's governance there has been an immediate change in Bihar.[75][76] Life

expectancy in Bihar (61 years) which is almost on par with the national life expectancy of 62.7 years.[77]

A village market

Bihar has significant levels of production for mango, guava, litchi, pineapple, brinjal, cauliflower, bhindi,

andcabbage in India.[78] Despite the states leading role in food production, investment in irrigation and other

agriculture facilities has been inadequate in the past. Historically, the sugar and vegetable oil industries were

flourishing sectors of Bihar. Until the mid fifties, 25% of India's sugar output was from Bihar. Dalmianagar was a

large agro - industrial town. There have been attempts to industrialize the state between 1950 and 1980: an oil

refinery in Barauni, a motor scooterplant at Fatuha, and a power plant at Muzaffarpur. However, these were

forced to shut down due to central government policy which neutralized the strategic advantages of Bihar.

Hajipur, near Patna, remains a major industrial town in the state, linked to the capital city through the Ganga

bridge and good road infrastructure.

The state's debt was estimated at 77% of GDP by 2007.[79] The Finance Ministry has given top priority to create

investment opportunities for big industrial houses like Reliance. Further developments have taken place in the

growth of small industries, improvements in IT infrastructure, the new software park in Patna, and the

completion of the expressway from the Purvanchal border through Bihar to Jharkhand. In August 2008, a Patna

registered company called the Security and Intelligence Services (SIS) India Limited[80] took over the Australian

guard and mobile patrol services business of American conglomerate, United Technologies Corp (UTC). SIS is

registered and taxed in Bihar.[81]The capital city, Patna, is one of the better off cities in India when measured by

per capita income.[82] ̂

[edit]Demands for smaller states

Bihar was divided into 2 states, Jharkhand and Bihar in 2000, by the then BJP-led union government as

mentioned in the BJP manifesto. There has been a demand for smaller states likeMithilanchal or Simanchal,

but they have gained little support.

[edit]Education

Main articles: Education in Bihar and Literacy in Bihar

See also: List of educational institutions in Bihar

Historically, Bihar has been a major centre of learning, home to the ancient universities of Nalanda (established in

450 CE) and Vikramshila (established in 783 AD).[83] Unfortunately, that tradition of learning which had its origin from

the time of Buddha or perhaps earlier, was lost during the medieval period when it is believed that marauding

armies of the invaders destroyed these centers of learning.[84]

Bihar saw a revival of its education system during the later part of the British rule when they established Patna

University (established in 1917) which is the seventh oldest university of the Indian subcontinent.[85] Some other

centers of high learning established by the British rule are Patna College (established in 1839), Bihar School of

Engineering (established in 1900; now known as National Institute of Technology, Patna), Prince of Wales

Medical College (established in 1925; now Patna Medical College and Hospital), Science College,

Patna(established in 1928) among others. After independence Bihar lost the pace in terms of establishing a

center of education. Modern Bihar has a grossly inadequate educational infrastructure creating a huge

mismatch between demand and supply. This problem further gets compounded by the growing aspirations of

the people and an increase in population. The craving for higher education among the general population of

Bihar has led to a massive migration of the student community from the state.

Bihar being a comparatively less literate state in India, with women's

literacy being only 33.57%, is striving to climb as the government has

established various educational institutions. At the time of

independence, women's literacy in Bihar was 4.22%. It is a pleasant

surprise to find that in spite of the meagre investment on education in

Bihar, specially compared to other Indian states, the students have done

very well. Famed national institutes of learning such

as IITs, IIMs, NITs and AIIMS have always have had a good

representation from Bihar which is usually higher than their proportion of

the population. Bihar has a National Institute of Technology (NIT) in Patna and an Indian Institute of Technology

(IIT)in Patna. Other institutions of higher learning, and coveted positions in the government also show a greater share

than the percentage of their population. A recent survey by Pratham[87] rated the absorption of their teaching by the

Bihar children better than those in other states.

Bihar established several new education institutes between 2006-2008. BIT Mesra started its Patna extension centre

in September 2006. On 8 August 2008, IIT of India was inaugurated in Patna with students from all over India.

[88] National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER)[89] is being set up in Hajipur. On 4 August

2008, National Institute of Fashion Technology, Patna was established as 9th NIFT of India.[90] Chanakya National

Law University a law university and Chandragupt Institute of Management a management institute was established in

later half of 2008.Steps to revive the ancient Nalanda University as Nalanda International University is being taken for

which countries like Japan, Korea and China have also taken initiatives. The Aryabhatt Knowledge University is

almost framed to start in Patna this year to deal with technical & medical studies & research. The A.N. Sinha

Institute[91] of Social Studies is a premier research institute in the state.The plan is to create the worlds best university

in the place which introduced the concept of university to the world.

Bihar e-Governance Services & Technologies(BeST) along with the Government of Bihar has initiated a unique

program to establish a Centre of excellence called Bihar Knowledge Centre,a finishing school to equip students

with the latest skills and customized short term training programs at an affordable cost. The centre aims to

attract every youth of the state to hone up their technical, professional and soft skills and prepare them for the

present industry requirement/job market. [92]

[edit]Culture

Main article: Culture of Bihar

[edit]Language and literature

Main articles: Languages in Bihar and Literature in Bihar

See also: Angika, Bhojpuri, Magadhi, Maithili language, Magadhi Prakrit, Hindi in Bihar, and Urdu Language in

Bihar

Literacy rate from 1951~2001[86]

Year Total Males Females

1951 13.49 22.68 4.22

1961 21.95 35.85 8.11

1971 23.17 35.86 9.86

1981 32.32 47.11 16.61

1991 37.49 51.37 21.99

2001 47.53 60.32 33.57

Hindi and Urdu are the official languages of the state, whilst the majority of the people speak one of the Bihari

languages - Bhojpuri, Magadhi, Maithili or Angika.Presently Bihari languages are considered one of the five

subgroups of Hindi however Maithili was declared as a separate language. However, these are considered to

be derived from the language of the erstwhile Magadha kingdom - Magadhi Prakrit, along

with Bengali, Assamese, and Oriya.Bihari Hindi a slang form of Standard Hindi is used as a lingua franca and

many speak it as their first language throughout state. A small minority also speaks Bengali mainly in big

districts or along the border area with West Bengal. Many Bengali speakers are generally people fromWest

Bengal or Hindu people from erstwhile East Pakistan who came during the Partition of India in 1947.

There is a common misconception that all Biharis speak Bhojpuri. It is a widely spoken language; about 20%

people speak Bhojpuri in Bihar and it is spoken only in western Bihar.The majority of population in Bihar speaks

Maithili and its dialects which accounts 55% of bihars population. The number of speakers of Bihari

languages are difficult to indicate because of unreliable sources. In the urban region most educated speakers

of the language name Hindi as their language because this is what they use in formal contexts. The

uneducated and the rural population of the region return Hindi as the generic name for their language.[93]

In spite of the large number of speakers of Bihari languages, they have not been constitutionally recognized

in India. Hindi is the language used for educational and official matters in Bihar.[94] These languages was legally

absorbed under the subordinate label of HINDI in the 1961 Census. Such state and national politics are

creating conditions for language endangerments.[95] The first success for spreading Hindi occurred in Bihar in

1881, when Hindi displaced Urdu as the sole official language of the province. In this struggle between

competing Hindi and Urdu, the potential claims of the three large mother tongues in the region

- Magahi, Bhojpuri and Maithili were ignored. After independence Hindi was again given the sole official status

through the Bihar Official Language Act, 1950.[96] Urdu became the second official language in the undivided

State of Bihar on 16 August 1989.

Nagarjun, known as People's poet.

The relationship of Maithili community with Bhojpuri and Magahi communities – the immediate neighbors have

been neither very pleasant nor very hostile.Maithili has been the only one among them which has been trying to

constantly deny superimposition of Hindi over her identity. The other two have given up their claims and have

resigned to accept the status of dialects of Hindi.

Bihar has produced a number of writers and scholars, including Mahamahopadhyaya Pandit Ram Avatar

Sharma, R. K. Sinha, Raja Radhika Raman Singh, Shiva Pujan Sahay, Divakar Prasad Vidyarthy, Ramdhari

Singh 'Dinkar', Ram Briksh Benipuri, Phanishwar Nath 'Renu', Pandit Nalin Vilochan Sharma,Gopal Singh

"Nepali", Baba Nagarjun, Mridula Sinha, and Pankaj Rag. Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan, the great writer

and Buddhist scholar, was born inU.P. but spent his life in the land of Lord Buddha, i.e., Bihar.Hrishikesh

Sulabh is the prominent writer of the new generation. He is short story writer, playwright and theatre critic. Arun

Kamal and Aalok Dhanwa are the well-known poets. Different regional languages also have produced some

prominent poets and authors. Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay, who is among the greatest writers in Bangla,

resided for some time in Bihar. Of late, the latest Indian writer in English, Upamanyu Chatterjee also hails from

Patna in Bihar. Devaki Nandan Khatri, who rose to fame at the beginning of the 20th century on account of his

novels such as Chandrakanta and Chandrakanta Santati, was born in Muzaffarpur, Bihar. Vidyapati Thakur is

the most renowned poet of Maithili (c. 14-15th century). Interestingly, the first Indian author in English was a

Bihari, Deen Mohammad. Among the contemprory writers in English Amitava Kumar, Tabish

Khair andSidhharth Chaoudhary are important names. Sidhharth Chaoudhary has been shortlisted for

2009 Man Asia Literary prize for his book Day Scholar.

The world famous literary and cultural movement Bhookhi Peedhi or Hungry generation was launched from

Bihar's capital in November 1961 by two firebrand brothers Samir Roychoudhury and Malay Roy Choudhury.

The movement had impacted most of the Indian languages of the time.

Urdu is second government language in Bihar which is the mother tongue of about Muslims who form about

17% of state's population. Near 25% people in Bihar read and write Urdu. Bihar has produced many Urdu

scholars, such as Shad Azimabadi,Jamil Maz'hari, Khuda Baksh Khan, Kaif Azimabadi, Rasikh Azimabadi, and

in these days, Kalim Aajiz.

[edit]Arts and crafts

See also: Madhubani Painting

A simple Madhubani Painting.

Madhubani paintings is a style of Indian painting, practiced in the Mithila region of Bihar. Tradition states that

this style of painting originated at the time of the Ramayana, when King Janak commissioned artists to

do paintings at the time of marriage of his daughter, Sita, to Lord Ram. The painting was traditionally done on

freshly plastered mud wall of huts, but now it is also done on cloth, hand-made paper and canvas. Madhubani

painting mostly depict nature and Hindu religious motifs, and the themes generally revolve around Hindu deities

like Krishna, Ram, Shiva, Durga,Lakshmi, and Saraswati. Natural objects like the sun, the moon, and religious

plants like tulsi are also widely painted, along with scenes from the royal court and social events like weddings.

Generally no space is left empty. Traditionally, painting was one of the skills that was passed down from

generation to generation in the families of the Mithila Region, mainly by women. The painting was usually done

on walls during festivals, religious events, and other milestones of the life-cycle such as

birth, Upanayanam (Sacred thread ceremony), and marriage.

Manjusha Kala or Angika Art is an art form of Anga region of Bihar. Notably artist Jahar Dasgupta born

in Jamshedpur, Bihar which is presently under state Jharkhand.

A painting of the city of Patna, on the River Ganges, Patna School of Painting.

Patna School of Painting or Patna Qalaam, some times also called Company painting, offshoot of the well-

know Mughal Miniature School of Painting flourished in Bihar during early 18th to mid 20th century. The

practitioners of this art form were descendants of Hindu artisans of Mughal painting who facing persecution

from the Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb found refuge, via Murshidabad, in Patna during late 18th century. They

shared the characteristics of the Mughal painters, but unlike them (whose subjects included only royalty and

court scenes), the Patna painters also started painting bazaar scenes. The paintings were executed

inwatercolours on paper and on mica. Favourite subjects were scenes of Indian daily life, local rulers, and sets

of festivals and ceremonies. Most successful were the studies of natural life, but the style was generally of a

hybrid and undistinguished quality. It is this school of painting that formed the nucleus for the formation of

the Patna Art School under the leadership of Shri Radha Mohan. College of arts and crafts Patna is an

important center of Fine Arts in Bihar.

Artisans selling their work near GPOPatna.

The artisans of Bihar have been very skillful in creating articles using local materials. Baskets, cups and

saucers made from bamboo-strips or cane reed are painted in vivid colors are commonly found

in Bihari homes. A special container woven out ofSikki Grass in the north, the "pauti", is a sentimental gift that

accompanies a bride when she leaves her home after her wedding. The weavers of Bihar have been practicing

their trade for centuries. Among their products in common use are the cotton dhurries and curtains. They are

produced by artisans in central Bihar, particularly in the Patna and Biharsharif areas. These colourful sheets,

with motifs of Buddhist artifacts, pictures of birds, animals, and/or flowers, gently wafting in the air through

doors and windows, blown by a cool summer breeze, used to be one of the most soothing sights as one

approached a home or an office. Bhagalpur is well known for its seri-culture, manufacture of silk yarn and

weaving them into lovely products.It is known as the tussah or tusser silk.

[edit]Performing arts

Main article: Music of Bihar

Magahi folk singers

Bharat Ratna Ustad Bismillah Khan, from Dumraon, Bihar

Bihar has contributed to the Indian (Hindustani) classical music and has produced musicians like Bharat

Ratna Ustad Bismillah Khan  who later migrated out of Bihar. Dhrupad singers like the Malliks

(Darbhanga Gharana) and the Mishras (Bettiah Gharana), who were patronised by the Zamindars of

Darbhanga and Bettiah respectively have produced maestros like Ram Chatur Mallik , Abhay Narayan Mallick,

Indra Kishore Mishra.

Perhaps, not well acknowledged and commercialised as those from the Dagar school of Dhrupad, they have

kept the Dhrupad tradition in perhaps the purest forms. Gaya was another centre of excellence in classical

music, particularly of the Tappa and Thumri variety. Pandit Govardhan Mishra, son of the Ram Prasad Mishra,

himself, an accomplished singer, is perhaps the finest living exponent of Tappa singing in India today,

according to Padmashri Gajendra Narayan Singh, former Chairman of Bihar Sangeet Natak Academy.

Gajendra Narayan Singh also writes in his latest book "surile Logon Ki Sangat" that Champanagar, Banaili was

another major centre of classical music. Rajkumar Shyamanand Sinha of Champanagar Banaili estate was a

great patron of music and himself, was one of the finest exponents of classical vocal music in Bihar in his time.

Gajendra Narayan Singh in his other book "Swar Gandh" has written that "Kumar Shyamanand Singh of Banaili

estate had such expertise in singing that many great singers including Surashri Kesarbai Kerkar were

convinced about his prowess in singing. After listening to Bandishes from Kumar Saheb, Pandit Jasraj was

moved to tears and lamented that alas! he could have such ability himself"(free translation of Hindi text).

Bihar has a very old tradition of beautiful folk songs, sung during important family occasions, such as marriage,

birth ceremonies, festivals, etc. and the most famous folk singer has beenPadma Shri Sharda Sinha. They are

sung mainly in group settings without the help of many musical instruments like Dholak, Bansuri and

occasionally Tabla and Harmonium are used. Bihar also has a tradition of lively Holi songs known as 'Phagua',

filled with fun rhythms. During the 19th century, when the condition of Bihar worsened under the British misrule,

manyBiharis had to migrate as indentured laborers to West Indian islands, Fiji, and Mauritius. During this time

many sad plays and songs called biraha became very popular, in the Bhojpurarea. Dramas on that theme

continue to be popular in the theaters of Patna.

Dance forms of Bihar are another expression of rich traditions and ethnic identity. There are several folk

dance forms that can keep one enthralled, such as dhobi nach, jhumarnach, manjhi, gondnach, jitiyanach,

more morni, dom-domin, bhuiababa, rah baba, kathghorwa nach, jat jatin, launda nach, bamar nach, jharni,

jhijhia, natua nach, bidapad nach, sohrai nach, and gond nach.

Theatre is another form in which the Bihari culture expresses itself. Some forms of theater with rich traditions

are Bidesia, Reshma-Chuharmal, Bihula-Bisahari, Bahura-Gorin, Raja Salhesh, Sama Chakeva, and Dom

Kach. These theater forms originate in the Anga region of Bihar.

[edit]Cuisine

Main article: Cuisine of Bihar

The cuisine of Bihar for the Hindu upper and middle classes is predominantly vegetarian, but eating non-

vegetarian food is also popular. However, people discourage eating meat daily and many Hindus don't eat

meat during Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The Muslims in Bihar however do generally eat meat as well as

vegetables. In Bihar people generally eat boiled rice and daal etc. and no Roti during lunch and Roti is eaten in

night with vegetables. The traditional cooking medium is mustard oil. Khichdi, a broth of rice and lentils

seasoned with spices and served with several accompanying items, constitutes the mid-day meal for most

Hindu Biharis on Saturdays. The favourite dish among Biharis is litti-chokha. Litti is made up of dough stuffed

with sattu (grinded powder coming from roasted brown chickpeas) then boiled in water . It is then fried in oil, but

little oil is used since it has been pre-boiled. The other way of cooking Litti is grilling it on red hot coal. Chokha

is made of mashed potatoes, fried onions, salt, cilantro, and carrom seeds. Litti is also accompanied

with ghee and channa (small brown chickpeas with onions and masala).

Chitba and Pitthow which are prepared basically from rice, are special foods of the Anga

region. Tilba and Chewda of Katarni rice are also special preparations of Anga. Kadhi bari is a popular favorite

and consists of fried soft dumplings made of besan (gram flour) that are cooked in a spicy gravy of yoghurt and

besan. This dish goes very well with plain rice.

Bihar offers a large variety of sweet delicacies which, unlike those from Bengal, are mostly dry. These

include Anarasa, Belgrami, Chena Murki, Motichoor ke Ladoo, Kala Jamun,Kesaria

Peda, Khaja, Khurma, Khubi ki Lai, Laktho, Parwal ki Mithai, Pua & Mal Pua, Thekua, Murabba and Tilkut.Tilkut

and Anarsa from gaya is world famous and LAI from Dhanarua is also famous. Many of these originate in towns

in the vicinity of Patna. Several other traditional salted snacks and savouries popular in Bihar

are Chiwra, Dhuska, Litti, Makhana andSattu. Khaja from Silaw, Nalanda is very famous in whole of state.

There is a distinctive Bihari flavor to the non-vegetarian cuisine as well, although some of the names of the

dishes may be the same as those found in other parts of North India. Roll is a typical Bihari non-vegetarian

dish. These are popular and go by the generic name Roll Bihari in and around Lexington Avenue (South) in

New York City.There is a very popular non-vegeterian dish called Tash, made by frying marinated mutton and

eaten with Chewra, the flattened rice. This particular dish is popular in Motihari and Bettiah.

Islamic culture and food, with Bihari flavor are also part of Bihar`s unique confluence of cultures. Famous food

items include Biharee Kabab, Shami Kabab, Nargisi Kufte, Shabdeg, Yakhnee Biryanee, Motton Biryani,

Shaljum Gosht, Baqer Khani, Kuleecha, Naan Rootee, Sawee ka Zarda, Qemamee Sawee, Gajar ka Halwa,

Ande ka ZfraniHalwa etc.

[edit]Religion

Main article: Religion in Bihar

Religion in BiharReligion PercentHinduism    83%

Islam    16%

Other    1%

Buddha's statue at Bodh Gaya's temple

Gautam Buddha attained Enlightenment at Bodh Gaya, a town located in the modern day district ofGaya in

Bihar. Vardhamana Mahavira, the 24th and the last Tirthankara of Jainism, was born in Vaishaliaround sixth

century BC.[97]

A typical Hindu Brahmin household would begin the day with the blowing of a conch shell at the dawn.

In rural Bihar, religion is the main component of popular culture. Shrines are located everywhere - even at the

foot of trees, roadsides, etc., religious symbols or images of deities can be found in the most obscure or the

most public places. From the dashboard of a dilapidated taxi to the plush office of a top executive, holy symbols

or idols have their place.

Hindus are a majority in the state. Most of the festivals are Hindu festivals. There are many variations on the

festival theme. While some are celebrated all over the state, others are observed only in certain areas.

However Bihar is so diverse that different regions and religions have something to celebrate at some time or

the other during the year. So festivals take place round the year. Many of these are officially recognized by the

days on which they take place being proclaimed as government holidays.

[edit]Major Communities

The main ethnic groups in Bihar are based on religion. Major people groups in Bihar are

Kayastha, Bhumihars, Kushwaha, Maithili

Brahmins, Baniya, Yadav, Rajputs, Shudras, Sayyids,Pathans, Ansari, and Bind.

One of the battle cry of the Bihar Regiment, consisting of 17 battalions, is "Jai Bajrang Bali" (Victory to Lord

Hanuman).[98]

[edit]Festivals

See also: Chhath

The Morning Worship Dala Chhath.

Chhath, also called Dala Chhath - is an ancient and major festival in Bihar, and is celebrated twice a year: once

in the summers, called the Chaiti Chhath, and once around a week after Deepawali, called the Kartik Chhath.

The latter is more popular because winters are the usual festive season in North India, and Chhath being an

arduous observance requiring the worshippers to fast without water for more than 24 hours, is easier to do in

the Indian winters. Chhath is the worship of the Sun God. Wherever people from Bihar have migrated, they

have taken with them the tradition of Chhath. This is a ritual bathing festival that follows a period of abstenance

and ritual segregation of the worshiper from the main household for two days. On the eve of Chhath, houses

are scrupulously cleaned and so are the surroundings. The ritual bathing and worship of the Sun God takes

place, performed twice: once in the evening and once on the crack of the dawn, usually on the banks of a

flowing river, or a common large water body. The occasion is almost a carnival, and besides every worshipper,

usually women, who are mostly the main ladies of the household, there are numerous participants and

onlookers, all willing to help and receive the blessings of the worshiper. Ritual rendition of regional folk songs,

carried on through oral transmission from mothers and mothers-in-law to daughters and daughters-in-law, are

sung on this occasion for several days on the go. These songs are a great mirror of the culture, social structure,

mythology and history of Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh. Chhath being celebrated at the crack of the dawn is

a beautiful, elating spiritual experience connecting the modern Indian to his ancient cultural roots. Chhath is

believed to be started by Karna, the king of Anga Desh (modern Bhagalpur region of Bihar).

Among ritual observances, the month long Shravani Mela held along a 108 kilometre route linking the towns

of Sultanganj and Deoghar (now in Jharkhand state) is of great significance. Shravani Mela is organised every

year in the Hindu month of Shravan, that is the lunar month of July-August. Pilgrims, known as Kanwarias,

wear saffron coloured clothes and collect water from a sacred Ghat (river bank) at Sultanganj, walking the

108 km stretch barefooted to the town of Deoghar to bathe a sacred Shiva-Linga. The observance draws

thousands of people to the town of Deoghar from all over India.

Teej and Chitragupta Puja are other local festivals celebrated with fervor in Bihar. Bihula-Bishari Puja is

celebrated in the Anga region of Bihar. The Sonepur cattle fair is a month long event starting approximately half

a month after Deepawali and is considered the largest cattle fair in Asia. It is held on the banks of the Son

River in the town of Sonepur. The constraints of the changing times and new laws governing the sale of

animals and prohibiting the trafficking in exotic birds and beasts have eroded the once-upon-a-time magic of

the fair.

Apart from Chhath, all major festivals of India are celebrated in Bihar, such as Makar

Sankranti, Saraswati Puja, Holi, Eid-ul-Fitr, Eid-ul-Adha (often called Eid-ul-Zuha in the Indian

Subcontinent), Muharram, Ram Navami, Rath yatra, Rakshabandhan, Maha Shivaratri, Durga

Puja, Diwali, Laxmi Puja, Christmas, Mahavir Jayanti, Buddha Purnima, Chitragupta Puja, and several other

local festivals as well.

[edit]Cinema

Main article: Cinema of Bihar

See also: Bhojpuri Film Industry and List of Bhojpuri Films

Bihar has a robust cinema industry for the Bhojpuri language. There are some

small Maithili, Angika and Magadhi film industry. First Bhojpuri Film was Ganga Jamuna released in 1961.

[99] "Lagi nahin chute ram" was the all-time superhit Bhojpuri film which was released against "Mugle Azam" but

was a superhit in all the eastern and northern sector. Bollywood'sNadiya Ke Paar is among the most

famous Bhojpuri language movie. The first Maithili movie was Kanyadan released in 1965,[100] of which a

significant portion was made in the Maithili language. Bhaiyaa a Magadhi film was released in 1961.

[101] Bhojpuri's history begins in 1962 with the well-received film Ganga Maiyya Tohe Piyari Chadhaibo ("Mother

Ganges, I will offer you a yellow sari"), which was directed by Kundan Kumar.[102] Throughout the following

decades, films were produced only in fits and starts. Films such as Bidesiya ("Foreigner," 1963, directed by S.

N. Tripathi) and Ganga ("Ganges," 1965, directed by Kundan Kumar) were profitable and popular, but in

general Bhojpuri films were not commonly produced in the 1960s and 1970s.

In the 1980s, enough Bhojpuri films were produced to tentatively make up an industry. Films such

as Mai ("Mom," 1989, directed by Rajkumar Sharma) and Hamar Bhauji ("My Brother's Wife," 1983, directed by

Kalpataru) continued to have at least sporadic success at the box office. However, this trend faded out by the

end of the decade, and by 1990, the nascent industry seemed to be completely finished.[103]

The industry took off again in 2001 with the super hit Saiyyan Hamar ("My Sweetheart," directed by Mohan

Prasad), which shot the hero of that film, Ravi Kissan, to superstardom.[104]This success was quickly followed by

several other remarkably successful films, including Panditji Batai Na Biyah Kab Hoi ("Priest, tell me when I will

marry," 2005, directed by Mohan Prasad) and Sasura Bada Paisa Wala ("My father-in-law, the rich guy," 2005).

In a measure of the Bhojpuri film industry's rise, both of these did much better business in the states of Uttar

Pradesh and Bihar than mainstream Bollywood hits at the time, and both films, made on extremely tight

budgets, earned back more than ten times their production costs.[105]Sasura Bada Paisa Wala also introduced

Manoj Tiwari, formerly a well-loved folk singer, to the wider audiences of Bhojpuri cinema. In 2008, he and Ravi

Kissan are still the leading actors of Bhojpuri films, and their fees increase with their fame. The extremely rapid

success of their films has led to dramatic increases in Bhojpuri cinema's visibility, and the industry now

supports an awards show[106] and a trade magazine, Bhojpuri City,[107] which chronicles the production and

release of what are now over one hundred films per year. Many of the major stars of

mainstream Bollywood cinema, including Amitabh Bachchan, have also recently worked in Bhojpuri films.

[edit]Media

Main article: Media in Bihar

in Bihar, A Supplement to Bihar State Gazette p. 28</ref> The Main newspapers published in Bihar till 1980s

was "The Indian Nation" and "Searchlight" in English and "Aryavarta" and "Pradeep" in Hindi.

Urdu journalism and poetry has a glorious past in Bihar. Many poets belong to Bihar such as Shaad Azimabadi,

Kaif Azimabadi, Kalim Ajiz and many more. Shanurahman, a world famous radio announcer, is from Bihar.

Many Urdu dailies such as Qomi Tanzim and Sahara publish from Bihar at this time.

The beginning of the twentieth century was marked by a number of notable new publications. A monthly

magazine named Bharat Ratna was started from Patna in 1901. It was followed by Ksahtriya

Hitaishi, Aryavarta from Dinapure, Patna, Udyoga and Chaitanya Chandrika.[108] Udyog was edited by

Vijyaanand Tripathy, a famous poet of the time and Chaitanya Chandrika by Krishna Chaitanya Goswami, a

literary figures of that time. This literary activities were not confined to Patna alone but to many districts of

Bihar.[109][110]

Magahi Parishad, established in Patna in 1952, pioneered Magadhi journalism in Bihar. It started the monthly

journal, Magadhi, which was later renamed Bihan.

DD Bihar and ETV Bihar are the television channels dedicated to Bihar. Recently a dedicated Bhojpuri channel,

Mahuaa TV has been launched.[111][112] followed by Hamar TV and MAURYA TV.

Hindustan, Dainik Jagran, Aj and Prabhat Khabar are some of the popular Hindi news papers of Bihar. National

English dailies like The Times of India and The Economic Times have reads in the urban regions. E-daily Jai

Bihar is popular among Biharis residing outside the state.

[edit]Transportation

Main article: Transport in Bihar

Streamers and dredgers at Gai Ghat,Patna.

Bihar has two operational airports: Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Airport, Patna, and the Gaya Airport, Gaya.

The Patna airport is connected

to Delhi,Mumbai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Bangaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Ranchi.

The Patna airport is categorized as a restricted international airport, with customs facilities to receive

international chartered flights.

The Gaya Airport is an international airport connected to Colombo, Singapore, Bangkok, Paro and more.

Bihar is well-connected by railway lines to the rest of India. Most of the towns are interconnected among

themselves, and they also are directly connected to Kolkata, Delhi and

Mumbai. Patna, Gaya, Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Katihar, Barauni and Chhapra are Bihar's best-

connected railway stations.

The state has a vast network of National and State highways.

For Buddhist pilgrims, the best option for travel to Bihar is to reach Patna or Gaya, either by air or train, and

then travel to Bodh Gaya, Nalanda,Rajgir and Vaishali. Sarnath in Uttar Pradesh also is not very far.

The Ganges — navigable throughout the year — was the principal river highway across the vast north Indian

Gangetic plain. Vessels capable of accommodating five hundred merchants were known to ply this river in the

ancient period; it served as a conduit for overseas trade, as goods were carried from Pataliputra (later Patna)

and Champa ( later Bhagalpur) out to the seas and to ports in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. The role of

Ganges as a channel for trade was enhanced by its natural links - it embraces all the major rivers and streams

in both north and south Bihar.[113]

In recent times Inland Waterways Authority of India has declared Ganga, between Allahabad and Haldia,

national inland waterway and has taken steps to restore its navigability.

[edit]Tourism

Trolley ride in Rajgir

Remains of the ancient city ofVaishali

Main article: Tourism in Bihar

Bihar is one of the oldest inhabited places in the world, with a history spanning 3,000 years. The rich culture

and heritage of Bihar is evident from the innumerable ancient monuments spread throughout the state. Bihar is

visited by scores of tourists from all over the world,[114] with around 6,000,000 (6 million) tourists visiting Bihar

every year.[114]

In earlier days, tourism in the region was purely based educational tourism, as Bihar was home of some

prominent ancient universities like Nalanda University & Vikramaśīla University.[115][116]

Bihar is one of the most sacred place for various religions

like Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and Islam.

[114]

Mahabodhi Temple, a Buddhist shrine and UNESCO World Heritage Site is also situated in Bihar.Mahatma

Gandhi Setu, Patna, is the longest river bridge in the world.

Excavation

Kumhrar·Agam Kuan·Barabar

Caves·Nalanda·Vikramsila

Ancient

Vishnupada Temple · Mahabodhi

Temple ·Sasaram · Maner

Sharif · Patliputra · Brahmayoni Hill · Pretshila

Hill · Ramshila Hill

Forts

Rohtasgarh Fort · Munger Fort · Sasaram

Fort ·Palamu Fort · Maner Fort · Jalalgarh

Fort ·Rajmahal, Bihar

|}

Pilgrimage sites in Bihar

Hindu Pilgrimage

Mahavir Mandir ·

Hariharkshetra, Hajipur.Sitamarhi · Madhubani · Punausa · Buxur · Wes

t Champaran · Munger · Jamui · Darbhanga · Anga

Jain Pilgrimage

Rajgir · Pawapuri · Patliputra · Arrah · Vikramasila· Kundalpur

Buddhist Pilgrimages

Mahabodhi Temple · Bodhi Tree ·Bodh

Gaya ·Gaya · Vaishali · Pawapuri· Nalanda · Rajgir ·Kesariya · Vikramshila · Areraj ·

ra